William Jackson writes the rules take effect immediately and could clear the way for FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology to start certifying devices that could operate in the 700 megahertz band for FirstNet.
GCN reports the commission expedited the rules because some jurisdictions have already received federal grants to develop a public safety LTE network on FirstNet’s airwaves.
FirstNet is meant to support video, data and voice communications among first responders, law enforcement officials and other emergency personnel, according to the report.
Jackson writes the FCC also consolidated some rules for commercial and public safety networking and issued limits intended to avoid interference between FirstNet and existing networks.